any idea's

[XS29J]

how can I make the vin# more readable

[WingCharger]

Wipe shaving cream across the number?
It fills in the impressions making them easier to read.

[tan top]

Wipe shaving cream across the number?
It fills in the impressions making them easier to read.

along similar sort of lines , wipe it with white paint , then with one stroke wipe the pad with a rag with thinners on it , or let the paint dry , flat the machined pad with 320 on a rubbing block  .... might take a couple of attempts but will work & look good 

[XS29J]

white paint

[XS29J]

[XS29J]

different light

[Ghoste]

Different light makes me wonder what would happen if you tried to brush some of that "invisible ink" stuff in there and hit it with a black light?

[tan top]

224399   or  199   possible vin    ................

now if you lightly rubbed that with 320 grit on a block  just a couple of passes would do , the numbers would show better  thinking about it , use black paint or something dark  ...so the digits would show up more once the area has had a quick blocking with 320 grit  it will be shiney

[nascarxx29]

I use chalk .I see its a hemi by the cross bolt main whats it going into

[XS29J]

Have been trying to locate the car it belongs to no luck yet will put it in the 71 Hemi RR For a driver this summer.

[tan top]

Have been trying to locate the car it belongs to no luck yet will put it in the 71 Hemi RR For a driver this summer.

71 Hemi roadrunner     there rare cars  from memory ...

[maxwellwedge]

Is that XX29 car alive? Maybe the engine that's in it now matches  What are the carb and dist. #'s/Dates? It lools like a 4-speed throttle bracket. Looks like an original dual point as well.

[69_500]

Is that the engine that Ed cook was talking about less than a year ago? 224390, or 399. I don't have a location for either one. sorry

[XS29J]

This engine was in a Superbird I purchased back in 1999. The Bird is gone but I kept the motor hoping to find the car it belongs to someday.

[hemi68charger]

With a seq# that low, it may be a C500, no?....

[Magnumcharger]

Get somebody who knows a bit about non-destructive testing to perform a "black on white" magnetic particle inspection.
All of the numbers stamped in that block will jump right out.

I performed that very technique on the block in my Charger after somebody had ground off the numbers with a die grinder.
It worked very well as the stamping process produces an impacted image a lot deeper than most people would expect.

This technique is also used by crime labs.

[PocketThunder]

Grind it smooth and restamp it?..??                                                                       i kid!  i kid!! 

[69_500]

I was wondering a simple pencil rubbing of the stamping would come out.

[Davtona]

Get somebody who knows a bit about non-destructive testing to perform a "black on white" magnetic particle inspection.
All of the numbers stamped in that block will jump right out.

I performed that very technique on the block in my Charger after somebody had ground off the numbers with a die grinder.
It worked very well as the stamping process produces an impacted image a lot deeper than most people would expect.

This technique is also used by crime labs.

I have always heard stories that there was a process that could tell what the stamped numbers were even if they were ground off. Just never knew what the process was or anyone that had done it. I agree stamping changes the metal so that the stamping is there even if it has been ground off as you said. On your block that had been ground off what did you do? Re machine the pad and restamp? Keep a copy of inspection as proof that its the original block? Just curious. 

[PocketThunder]

Get somebody who knows a bit about non-destructive testing to perform a "black on white" magnetic particle inspection.
All of the numbers stamped in that block will jump right out.

I performed that very technique on the block in my Charger after somebody had ground off the numbers with a die grinder.
It worked very well as the stamping process produces an impacted image a lot deeper than most people would expect.

This technique is also used by crime labs.

I have always heard stories that there was a process that could tell what the stamped numbers were even if they were ground off. Just never knew what the process was or anyone that had done it. I agree stamping changes the metal so that the stamping is there even if it has been ground off as you said. On your block that had been ground off what did you do? Re machine the pad and restamp? Keep a copy of inspection as proof that its the original block? Just curious. 

How far into the metal does the signal from the stamp travel?  Can you have it x-rayed for the numbers?

[nascarxx29]

Acid or x ray maybe the way its retrieved??

[Magnumcharger]

X-ray on a cast iron piece is extremely difficult for two reasons: Firstly, the grain structure of cast iron, being as course as it is, could easily mask the details of anything you might see. Consider that you have to pound Xrays all of the way through the structure - well, that means that you're looking at ALL of the material under the stamping pad too.
Secondly, any heavy ferrous piece such as an engine block will take COPIOUS amounts of energy to penetrate it. It's really not practical.

Acid....that's an interesting thought. However, consider if acid would actually have any effect on something as dense as cast iron?
It takes days for acid to have any effect on a car body, and it's mild steel. Also, what controls could you implement to assure that the acid wouldn't go too far?

I found out that the block in my car wasn't the original, even though it was almost spot on in appearance and vintage. I wrote down the information, and promptly discarded it.